System, method and program for preventing unauthorized copies of webcomics and tracking replicated webcomics

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a system, a method, and a program for preventing unauthorized copies of webcomics and tracking replicated webcomics. A method for preventing unauthorized copies of webcomics according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a step (S 100 ) in which a service server separates and stores webcomic images and dialogue text which are included in general webcomic data; a step (S 110 ) of recognizing a user operation for a user client and recognizing a point on a webcomic that has moved from an initial position; and a step (S 120 ) of providing final webcomic data that combines the webcomic images and the dialogue text with respect to an area displayed in real time on a screen of the user client.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of International PatentApplication No. PCT/KR2017/014044, filed on Dec. 4, 2017, which is basedupon and claims the benefit of priority to Korean Patent ApplicationNos. 10-2017-0013494, filed on Jan. 31, 2017, 10-2017-0092399 filed onJul. 21, 2017 and 10-2017-0137569, filed on Oct. 23, 2017. Thedisclosures of the above-listed applications are hereby incorporated byreference herein in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

Embodiments of the inventive concept described herein relate to asystem, a method, and a program for preventing unauthorized copies ofwebcomics and tracking the replicated webcomics, and more particularly,relate to a system, a method, and a program for preventing unauthorizedcopies and distribution of webcomics provided to a client by a user andtracking the replicated webcomics.

Generally, the online digital comic data service over Internet, which isreferred to as “webcomics”, is provided by a portal site. When comicdata is requested from a mobile communication terminal (a smartphone, anote pad, or a PC), which is a client connected to a web server overInternet, the comic data prepared on the web server is provided overInternet.

Recently, there have been a lot of problems that the webcomic image iscopied without permission and is distributed. The author and webcomicdistribution platform are damaged by copying and distributing the entirewebcomic data to a cafe or the like without permission. When a usersubscribes to webcomics through a web page or an application, becauseusers may easily download entire webcomic data as the entire webcomicdata is provided to a user client at one go, illegal distribution ofillegal downloads of webcomics may increase.

To solve the above-described issue, there is a need for the technologyof preventing webcomic subscribers from illegally downloading the entirewebcomic data at one go.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the inventive concept provide a system, a method, and aprogram for preventing unauthorized copies of webcomics and tracking thereplicated webcomics, by preventing some areas of the webcomics providedto the user client from being exposed.

Embodiments of the inventive concept provide a method, a program, and asystem for tracking the replicated webcomics, by tracking a user whoillegally distribute webcomics based on the identification datacontained in the webcomics provided to the user client.

The technical problems to be solved by the inventive concept are notlimited to the aforementioned problems, and any other technical problemsnot mentioned herein will be clearly understood from the followingdescription by those skilled in the art to which the inventive conceptpertains.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a method for protectingunauthorized copies of webcomics includes separating and storing, by aservice server, a webcomic image and a dialogue text, which are includedin a general webcomic data, recognizing a user operation for a userclient to recognize a position on a webcomic that has moved from aninitial position, and combining, by the service server or a serviceapplication, the webcomic image and the dialogue text to provide finalwebcomic data to an area displayed in real time on a screen of a userclient.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a method for tracking replicatedwebcomics includes generating, by a server providing a user with awebcomic image, identification data based on at least one of useridentification information and usage time information, generating awatermark based on the identification data, generating final webcomicdata by including the generated watermark in the webcomic image, andproviding the user with the final webcomic data.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a method for protectingunauthorized copies of webcomics includes separating and storing, by aservice server, a webcomic image and a dialogue text, which are includedin a general webcomic data, recognizing a user operation for a userclient to recognize a position on a webcomic that has moved from aninitial position, and combining, by the service server or a serviceapplication, the webcomic image and the dialogue text to provide finalwebcomic data to an area displayed in real time on a screen of a userclient.

According to another embodiment, the separating and the storing includesreceiving, by the service server, the webcomic image and the dialoguetext from a webcomic author client in a state where the webcomic imageand the dialogue text are separated.

According to another embodiment, the webcomic author client separates awebcomic image and respective dialogue data using a dedicated program togenerate a respective file, when a webcomic author directly enters adialogue on the webcomic image.

According to another embodiment, the dialogue text includes pieces ofrespective dialogue data, and each of the pieces of respective dialoguedata includes combination position data to be displayed in a specificwebcomic frame.

According to another embodiment, the method may further includedividing, by the service server, the webcomic image into each webcomicframe to assign first identification information, assigning, by theservice server, second identification information to each dialoguecombination position in the webcomic image, and adding the firstidentification information and the second identification informationabout a dialogue combination position of a specific webcomic framematched with each of the pieces of respective dialogue data, to each ofthe pieces of respective dialogue data as the combination position data.

According to another embodiment, the providing of the final webcomicdata includes combining respective dialogue data with a webcomic framethat will appear in succession to a currently displayed screen dependingon the user operation and removing respective dialogue data previouslycombined with the webcomic image.

According to another embodiment, the providing of the final webcomicdata includes providing, by the service server, the user client with awebcomic image of a specific episode, extracting respective dialoguedata corresponding to a current screen display area or a webcomic frameadjacent to the current screen display area, from the dialogue text totransmit the respective dialogue data to the user client, and combining,by the service application, the respective dialogue data with thewebcomic image in real time.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a method for protectingunauthorized copies of webcomics includes combining, by a service serveror a service application, an opaque layer on a webcomic to generatefinal webcomic data, recognizing a user operation for a user client torecognize a point on a webcomic that has moved from an initial position,and changing and providing only an area displayed on a screentransparently by an operation of the user client.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a program for protectingunauthorized copies of webcomics is stored in a medium to execute themethod for protecting unauthorized copies of webcomics, in combinationwith a computer that is a piece of hardware.

According to another exemplary embodiment, a method for trackingreplicated webcomics may include generating, by a server providing auser with a webcomic image, identification data based on at least one ofuser identification information and usage time information, generating awatermark based on the identification data, generating final webcomicdata by including the generated watermark in the webcomic image, andproviding the user with the final webcomic data.

Moreover, the method for tracking replicated webcomics may furtherinclude searching for the watermark in replicated webcomic data andrestoring the identification data based on the watermark to identify anillegal distributor, when the final webcomic data is replicated.

Furthermore, the generating of the final webcomic data may includepositioning the watermark at a position not distinguished by a naked eyein the webcomic image.

Also, the watermark may be entered in a form of a bar code in a spacebetween webcomic frames, or may be thinly entered along an image line ina webcomic.

In addition, the generating of the final webcomic data may includegenerating a first layer including the webcomic image, generating asecond layer in which the watermark is positioned at a watermarkattachable position received from a service server, and combining thefirst layer and the second layer to generate the final webcomic data.

Moreover, the generating of the watermark may include dividing theidentification data into pieces of identification data to generate aplurality of watermarks, and the generating of the final webcomic datamay include positioning the generated plurality of watermarks in aplurality of areas of the webcomic image, respectively.

Furthermore, the plurality of watermarks may overlap with a part of thedivided pieces of identification data.

Also, the generating of the plurality of watermarks may includegenerating restoration data including information about a position andplacement order in which the plurality of watermarks are positioned, torestore the identification data based on the plurality of watermarks.

In addition, the method may further include setting indistinguishablecharacters to one group upon restoring the identification data andsetting a key set for forming the identification data for selecting onlyone character as a usable character in the set group, when the pluralityof watermarks are composed of texts.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a program for tracking replicatedwebcomics is stored in a medium to execute the method for trackingreplicated webcomics in combination with a computer that is a piece ofhardware.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The above and other objects and features will become apparent from thefollowing description with reference to the following figures, whereinlike reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the variousfigures unless otherwise specified, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a method for preventing unauthorized copies ofwebcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 2 is an exemplary view in which a dialogue text is combined withonly a webcomic image area displayed on a screen of a user client,according to an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method for preventing unauthorized copies ofwebcomics, according to another embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary view in which only an area displayed on a screenof a user client is processed transparently, according to an embodimentof the inventive concept;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a system that tracks replicatedwebcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating an example of a method of trackingreplicated webcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventiveconcept;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method of tracking replicatedwebcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating an example in which a webcomic image and awatermark are allocated to another layer, according to an embodiment ofthe inventive concept; and

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating an example in which a plurality ofwatermarks are inserted, according to an embodiment of the inventiveconcept.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the inventive concept will bedescribed in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Theabove and other aspects, features and advantages of the inventiveconcept will become apparent from the following description of thefollowing embodiments given in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings. However, the inventive concept is not limited to theembodiments disclosed below, but may be implemented in various forms.The embodiments of the inventive concept is provided to make thedisclosure of the inventive concept complete and fully inform thoseskilled in the art to which the inventive concept pertains of the scopeof the inventive concept. The same reference numerals denote the sameelements throughout the specification.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientificterms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by thoseskilled in the art to which the inventive concept pertains. It will befurther understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly useddictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that isconsistent with their meaning in the context of the specification andrelevant art and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overlyformal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing embodimentsand is not intended to limit the inventive concept. In thespecification, the singular forms include plural forms unlessparticularly mentioned. The terms “comprises” and/or “comprising” usedherein does not exclude presence or addition of one or more otherelements, in addition to the aforementioned elements.

In the specification, ‘general webcomic data’ refers to data of ageneral webcomic type, in which a dialogue and an image are combinedwith each other.

In the specification, a ‘webcomic image’ means that only the image isincluded in the general webcomic data other than the dialogue.

In the specification, a ‘dialogue text’ means data obtained bycollecting the dialogue included in the general webcomic data.

In the specification, ‘respective dialogue data’ means each dialogueincluded in the dialogue text. The ‘respective dialogue data’ may beincluded in a specific speech balloon within each webcomic frame and maybe applied as a single unit.

In the specification, an ‘opaque layer’ means a layer capable oftransparently processing only a specific area.

In the specification, ‘final webcomic data’ means webcomic dataprocessed such that the part of webcomic images or dialogue textsconstituting the general webcomic data is not displayed.

In the specification, a ‘service server’ refers to a server that storesthe webcomic data of an author and provides the webcomic data to a userclient.

In the specification, a ‘service application’ refers to an applicationthat provides webcomics received from the service server. The ‘serviceapplication’ may simply provide a specific type of webcomic dataprovided from the service server and may generate the final webcomicdata by combining webcomic images and dialogue texts provided from theservice server.

In the specification, a ‘webcomic maker client’ refers to a client usedby the webcomic maker and means a terminal device that transmitswebcomic data to the service server.

In the specification, the ‘user client’ means a terminal device thatdisplays the webcomic data received from the service server or thewebcomic data generated by the service application, on a screen.

Hereinafter, a system, a method, and a program for preventingunauthorized copies of webcomics and tracking the replicated webcomicswill be described with reference to drawings.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a method for preventing unauthorized copies ofwebcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the inventiveconcept, a method for protecting unauthorized copies of webcomics mayinclude a step S100 in which a service server separates and stores awebcomic image 100 and a dialogue text 200 which are included in generalwebcomic data, a step S110 of recognizing a user operation for a userclient to recognize a point on the webcomics that has moved from aninitial position, and a step S120 of providing final webcomic data,which is obtained by combining the webcomic image 100 and the dialoguetext 200, to the area displayed in real time on the screen of the userclient. That is, the service server separates and manages the webcomicimage 100 and the dialogue text 200 and combines and provides thewebcomic image 100 and the dialogue text 200 to only the area providedto the user client. Hereinafter, the detailed description about eachstep is provided.

In step S100, the service server separates and stores the webcomic image100 and the dialogue text 200, which are included in the webcomics. Inan embodiment, the service server separately receives the webcomic image100 and the dialogue text 200 from the client of a webcomic maker (i.e.,an author). That is, the service server receives the webcomic image 100in the form of an image file and the dialogue text 200 in the form of atext, from the webcomic maker. The webcomic author may draw the webcomicimage 100 in a webcomic maker client and then may separately create adialogue as a text file; the webcomic author performs a general webcomiccreation process (i.e., the process of directly entering a dialogue intothe speech bubble in webcomics) and may perform a webcomic work, using aprogram that automatically separates the webcomic image 100 and thedialogue text 200, thereby automatically separately generating thewebcomic image 100 and the dialogue text 200.

Furthermore, according to another embodiment, the service serverrecognizes and extracts a text through OCR, image recognition, or thelike from the general webcomics received from a webcomic maker client,removes the text from the webcomics, and generates the webcomic image100. That is, the webcomic maker performs the webcomic creation processin the existing manner in the user client to transmit general webcomicdata including a dialogue to the service server, and the service serverperforms the process of separating the webcomic image 100 and thedialogue text 200 through OCR or image recognition. The method in whichthe service server separates and stores the webcomic image 100 and thedialogue text 200 is not limited to the described method and variousmethods may be applied.

Moreover, for the purpose of combining the webcomic image 100 and thedialogue text 200 while the webcomic image 100 and the dialogue text 200are displayed on the screen of the user client after the webcomic image100 and the dialogue text 200 are separated and stored, the webcomicimage 100 or the dialogue text 200 may include data (i.e., combinationposition data) associated with a dialogue combination position.According to an embodiment, respective dialogue data 210 included in thedialogue text 200 may include data associated with the position to bedisplayed on the webcomic image 100. That is, webcomic frameinformation, which needs to be combined with each dialogue and positioninformation in the corresponding frame, may be included. The positioninformation may be specified in one or more areas (or combination areas)in which each dialogue needs to be combined within each webcomic frame;when an identification number is assigned to each combination area, theposition information may be an identification number corresponding tothe combination area (or combination position).

To this end, the service server divides the webcomic image 100 intorespective webcomic frames to assign first identification information.The first identification information is identification informationmatched with a specific webcomic frame. Afterward, the service serverassigns the second identification information to each dialoguecombination position within the webcomic image 100. The secondidentification information is identification information matched witheach combination area (or combination position) that is present in thewebcomic frame. Afterward, the service server may add the firstidentification information and the second identification informationabout the dialogue combination position of a specific webcomic framewith which the respective dialogue data 210 is matched, to therespective dialogue data 210 as combination position data.

In step S110, the service server or the service application recognizesthe user operation for the user client to recognize the position onwebcomics moved from an initial position. That is, the service server orthe service application recognizes the current screen position of theuser client provided by webcomics, in the entire webcomic image 100.

According to an embodiment, the service application installed in theuser client grasps a user operation state, which is entered by a userinto the user client to receive the next area of webcomics, to calculatethe current screen position. For example, when the user client is a PC,the service application (e.g., a program operating together with anInternet browser when the user subscribes to webcomics using a web page)installed in the PC measures the degree of scroll using a mouse tocalculate the current screen position reached from the initial positionof the webcomics. Moreover, for example, when the user client is amobile terminal including a touch screen, the service applicationinstalled in a mobile terminal measures a screen changing speed (e.g.,the screen is quickly changed as the user strongly performs a swipingoperation) according to the swiped degree or the swiping operation andcalculates the current screen position, which is reached from theinitial position of the webcomics, based on the screen changing speed.

In step S120, the service server or the service application may combinethe webcomic image 100 and the dialogue text 200 to provide the combinedresult to the area displayed in real time on the screen of the userclient. That is, the service server or the service application maycombine the dialogue text 200 in only the area of the webcomic image 100corresponding to the screen position displayed on the user client.

For example, when the webcomic image 100 and the dialogue text 200 arecombined by the service application, the respective dialogue data 210 iscombined with the webcomic frame that will appear in succession to thecurrently displayed screen depending on the user operation, and therespective dialogue data 210 combined previously with the webcomic image100 is removed. At this time, the service server may transmit thedialogue text 200 in real time in a state of encrypting the dialoguetext 200.

According to an embodiment, in step S120, the service applicationinstalled in the user client may combine the webcomic image 100 with thedialogue text 200 to display final webcomic data on a screen. Forexample, the service server may provide the specified webcomic image 100of the specific episode to the user client and may extract therespective dialogue data 210, which corresponds to the current screendisplay area or the webcomic frame adjacent to the current screendisplay area, from the dialogue text 200 to transmit the respectivedialogue data 210 to the user client. Afterward, the service applicationmay combine the respective dialogue data 210 with the webcomic image 100in real time.

Furthermore, for example, when the webcomic data is set to a set of oneor more webcomic frames and is provided from the service server to theuser client in units of sets, the service server encrypts and transmitsthe entire text data included in the specific episode of the specifiedwebcomics, to the user client. Afterward, the service server providesthe user client with one or more webcomic frames (i.e., frame set) thatneed to be displayed on the screen later. Afterward, the service servermay make a request for the combination of the dialogue text 200corresponding to the webcomic frame received by the service applicationin the user client.

According to another embodiment, in step S120, the service server mayprovide final webcomic data obtained by combining a dialogue with thewebcomic frame (e.g., the specific number of webcomic frames after thewebcomic frame currently displayed on the screen of the user client)requested from the user client. In this way, the webcomic frame providedfrom the service server to the user client is in the form of the generalwebcomic combined with the dialogue, but is sequentially providedwithout providing the entire general webcomic image 100 at a time, andthus a user may fail to illegally download the entire webcomics (i.e.,general webcomic data) including all dialogues, at a time.

Moreover, the service server or the service application may encrypt andstore the dialogue text 200. The service server or the serviceapplication may decrypt and provide the dialogue, which has beenencrypted and stored over the webcomic image 100. In this way, eventhough the user captures the consecutively entire screens of webcomicsfor unauthorized copies/replication, the dialogue text 200 is notincluded in an area other than a display area provided to the screen ofthe user client, and thus the capture image to be illegally distributedmay not be directly generated. Accordingly, the specific episode of thewebcomics may be prevented from being illegal distributed, by storing orcapturing the entire images of the webcomics provided to the userclient.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, according to another embodiment of theinventive concept, a method for protecting unauthorized copies ofwebcomics may include a step S200 in which a service server or a serviceapplication generates final webcomic data by combining an opaque layer300 on webcomics, a step S210 of recognizing a user operation for theuser client to recognize a position on webcomics moved from an initialposition, and a step S220 of transparently changing the area displayedon a screen by the operation of a user client. That is, the illegalcopies may be prevented in the manner of combining the opaque layer 300on the webcomics and transparently providing only the screen displayarea provided to the user client. Hereinafter, the detailed descriptionabout each step is provided.

In step S200, the service server or the service application may combinethe opaque layer 300 on webcomics. According to an embodiment, theservice server generates final webcomic data obtained by combining theopaque layer 300 with general webcomic data including the dialogue andtransmits the final webcomic data to the user client. Furthermore,according to another embodiment, the service application receivesgeneral webcomic data from the service server and then combines theopaque layer 300 capable of being transformed into a transparent layer,with the partial area on the webcomics.

In step S210, the service server or the service application recognizesthe user operation for the user client to recognize the position onwebcomics moved from an initial position (step S210 is the same as stepS110).

Afterward, in step S220, the service server or the service applicationtransparently changes and provides the area displayed on the screen, inresponse to the operation of the user client.

In this way, it is impossible to capture and store the entire webcomicsprovided through communication to the user client at a time. That is,because a user who desires to illegally distribute webcomics may storethe entire areas only when the user captures each portion displayed onthe screen of the user client, it is difficult to generate a file forillegally distributing webcomics.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a system that tracks replicatedwebcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept. FIG. 6is a view illustrating an example of a method of tracking replicatedwebcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 5, a service application 400 may receive webcomic datafrom a service server 500 to provide a user with the webcomic data. Atthis time, the service application 400 may be one of applicationsinstalled in a user terminal and may receive the webcomic data from aserver in real time or provide the user with the stored webcomic data.

In the meantime, the service server 500 obtains identification datagenerated based on at least one of user identification information orusage time information. That is, while transmitting the entire webcomicsor the specific episode to the service application 400 of a specificuser client, the service server 500 may obtain the user identificationinformation (e.g., a user ID, a telephone number, or the like) and timeinformation, as the identification data. Furthermore, the identificationdata is not necessarily limited to the above-described configuration;those skilled in the art, to which the inventive concept pertains, willeasily understand that the identification data may include variouspieces of data for identifying a user downloading the webcomics.

The service server 500 generates a watermark such that theidentification data is included in a webcomic image.

For example, referring to FIG. 6, identification data 501 may betransformed into a small text that is not visually identifiable and thenmay be displayed on an area 502 between webcomic frames, an edge 503 ofa speech bubble in the webcomics, or the like. Alternatively, in anotherembodiment in which the identification data is included in a webcomicimage, the service server 500 may add the identification data to thewebcomic image in a color that cannot be distinguished by a naked eyebecause the color is similar to the background color other than thecolor of the dialogue. Also, the service server 500 may enter theencrypted data without entering the identification data as it is.

In addition, in another embodiment in which the identification data isincluded in a webcomic image, it is impossible for the user to recognizethe identification data, by dividing and displaying data (e.g., data inthe form of a bar code) obtained by encrypting the identification datain a plurality of areas within the webcomics. In particular, the serviceserver 500 encrypts the identification data and then generates theencrypted identification data as a specific identification code (e.g., abar code). Afterward, the service server 500 divides the identificationcode into a plurality of pieces and then adds the plurality of pieces tothe plurality of areas in the webcomics. For example, the service serveradds the divided identification codes (i.e., a plurality ofidentification codes formed after a single identification code isdivided) to the area between webcomic frames, the edge of the webcomics,or the like. The service server identifies a user who illegallydistributes the webcomics, by extracting and restoring the plurality ofdivided identification codes included in the illegally distributedwebcomics.

The service server 500 may include data for grasping the position andplacement order of the divided identification code within the webcomicsto restore the identification code. Also, for the purpose of restoringthe identification code, the service server 500 may perform divisionsuch that a portion with which the identification code overlaps ispresent, may connect to the divided identification code found in thewebcomics, and may make it possible to restore the identification code.

In this way, even in the case where the whole specific episode of thewebcomics is provided to the user client as a user subscribes towebcomics without using the service application connected to the serviceserver 500, it is possible to detect a user who illegally distributesthe webcomics and then to take action, thereby reducing the illegalattempt of replicating webcomics.

In the meantime, in the descriptions about the illustration in FIGS. 5and 6, a method in which the service server 500 obtains identificationdata and generates final webcomic data to provide the serviceapplication with the final webcomic data is described. However, thoseskilled in the art, to which the inventive concept pertains, will easilyunderstand that the service application 400 installed in a clientterminal obtains user identification data and then generates a watermarkbased on the user identification data to generate the final webcomicdata such that the watermark is included in the webcomic image.

In the case where the service application 400 generates a watermark, theservice server 500 of webcomics does not need to add the watermark toall webcomics; only when a user who illegally replicates webcomicscaptures or downloads the webcomics, the watermark may overlap with animage and then may be stored as the image; the watermark to which theuser identification data is reflected may be included even in anoff-line state.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method of tracking replicatedwebcomics, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 7, in step S600, the service server 500 providing auser with a webcomic image generates identification data based on atleast one of user identification information and usage time information.In the future, it is possible to identify who is an illegal distributorwhen only the identification data is restored from the webcomic image,by including up to the usage time information as well as the useridentification information.

In step S610, the service server 500 may generate a watermark based onthe identification data.

At this time, it is possible to generate a plurality of watermarks bydividing the identification data into a plurality of pieces.Furthermore, a part of the divided identification data may be redundant.

The restoration data including information about the position andplacement order in which a plurality of watermarks are positioned may begenerated to restore the identification data based on the plurality ofwatermarks. For example, when the identification data is divided intopieces of identification data while the identification mark includes theredundant part and the divided pieces of identification data arecombined as the watermark with the webcomic image, there is a need forrecombination information such that the divided pieces of identificationdata are capable of being generated again as the identification mark.The service server 500 or the service application 400 may store theplurality of divided identification data in the form of the restorationdata.

Furthermore, when a plurality of watermarks are composed of texts,indistinguishable characters may be set to one group upon restoring theidentification data, and a key set of forming the identification datafor selecting only one character as a usable character may be set in theset group. For example, similar characters such as ‘I’ (upper caseletter) and ‘l’ (lower case letter) may be grouped into one group, andit is specified that only one of the characters is available.

In step S620, the service server 500 may generate final webcomic data byincluding the generated watermark in the webcomic image. At this time,the service server 500 may position the watermark at a position, whichis not distinguished by a naked eye in the webcomic image. For example,the watermark may be entered in the form of a bar code in the spacebetween webcomic frames, or may be thinly entered along the image linein the webcomics.

In the meantime, according to another embodiment, the serviceapplication 400 may generate the first layer including a webcomic imageand may receive a candidate position for attaching the watermark, fromthe service server 500. Moreover, after the second layer on which thegenerated watermark is positioned at one of candidate positions isgenerated, the final webcomic data to be provided to a user may begenerated by combining the first layer and the second layer. That is,when separately generating the webcomic image layer and the watermarklayer, the service application 400 may recognize the webcomic image todetermine the position of the watermark attachment, may obtaininformation about the predetermined plurality of watermark attachablepositions from the service server 500, and may select some of theplurality of positions to allow the plurality of watermarks to beattached.

In step S630, the service application 400 receives the final webcomicdata from the service server 500 and provides the user with the finalwebcomic data. Herein, the service application 400 may include a webbrowser installed in a user terminal by default, as well as a dedicatedapplication for providing webcomics.

Meanwhile, a method of tracking replicated webcomics may further includesearching for the watermark in the replicated webcomic data andrestoring the identification data based on the watermark to identify anillegal distributor, when the final webcomic data is replicated.

When one identification mark is divided and then the dividedidentification marks are positioned in the form of a plurality ofwatermarks, after the divided watermark unit is found, theidentification mark may be restored based on the restoration data foreach webcomic.

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating an example in which a webcomic image and awatermark are allocated to another layer, according to an embodiment ofthe inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 8, final webcomic data may be composed of a firstlayer 701 including a webcomic image and a second layer 702 includingtext data. The first layer 701 and the second layer 702 may be displayedwhile overlapping with each other only in the step provided to a user,and thus it is different for a user to illegally capture or storewebcomics. In addition, the second layer 702 includes the watermarkbased on user identification data 700, and thus the watermark may beeasily positioned at a position not visible in the webcomics. Inparticular, the service application 400 may insert the watermark atdifferent positions for each webcomic, and thus it may be difficult forthe illegal replicator to arbitrarily delete the watermark.

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating an example in which a plurality ofwatermarks are inserted, according to an embodiment of the inventiveconcept.

Referring to FIG. 9, identification data 800 may be divided into aplurality of watermarks 801, 802, and 803 and may be displayed inwebcomics. At this time, the position to which the watermark is attachedmay be determined by the application 400 or the service server 500; thewatermark may not be displayed in one area but be attached to aplurality of attachable positions after being divided into severalareas. Furthermore, in the plurality of watermarks, some (802 and 803)of the identification data may overlap with each other; when each of theplurality of watermarks is observed, the identification data may bedisplayed while being encrypted such that it is difficult to recognizethe identification data. In contrast, at this time, restoration data foragain restoring the identification mark may be separately generated andmanaged.

According to an embodiment of the inventive concept, when the captureitself is not blocked upon subscribing to webcomics using the webbrowser of a user client, it is possible to detect and punish theillegal distributor by adding the identification data unidentifiable bythe user to the webcomics.

In addition, a webcomics server may display the watermark generatedbased on user account information, together with webcomics; even thoughthe watermark is not added to all webcomics, the watermark layer may bestored together only when the capture or download is performed, and thusthe webcomics may be efficiently prevented from being replicated.

According to an embodiment of the inventive concept described above, themethod for preventing unauthorized copies of webcomics and tracking thereplicated webcomics may be implemented as a program (or application) tobe executed in combination with a hardware computer and may be stored ina medium.

The above-described program may include a code encoded by using acomputer language such as C, C++, JAVA, a machine language, or the like,which a processor (CPU) of the computer can read through the deviceinterface of the computer, such that the computer reads the program andperforms the methods implemented with the program. The code may includea functional codes associated with the function that defines functionsnecessary to perform the methods, and may include a control codeassociated with an execution procedure necessary for the processor ofthe computer to perform the functions in a predetermined procedure.Furthermore, the code may further include additional informationnecessary for the processor of the computer to perform the functions ora memory reference-related code associated with the position (address)of the internal or external memory of the computer, at which the medianeeds to be checked. Moreover, when the processor of the computer needsto communicate with any other remote computer or any other remote serverto perform the functions, the code may further include acommunication-related code associated with how to communicate with anyother remote computer or server using the communication module of thecomputer, what information or media should be transmitted or receivedduring communication, or the like.

The stored media may mean the media that does not store data for a shortperiod of time such as a register, a cache, a memory, or the like butsemi-permanently stores to be read by the device. Specifically, forexample, the stored media include, but are not limited to, ROM, RAM,CD-ROM, magnetic tape, floppy disk, optical data storage device, and thelike. That is, the program may be stored in various recording media onvarious servers that the computer can access, or various recording mediaon the computer of the user. In addition, the media may be distributedto a computer system connected to a network, and a computer-readablecode may be stored in a distribution manner.

According to an embodiment of the inventive concept, only the areadisplayed on the screen of the user client may be combined with adialogue text or may be displayed transparently, and thus, the entirewebcomics may be prevented from being stored even though a user capturesthe entire successive images (i.e., the whole specific episode ofwebcomics). In this way, the webcomics may be easily prevented frombeing unauthorized replicated using the capture function of the user.

Although embodiments of the inventive concept have been described hereinwith reference to accompanying drawings, it should be understood bythose skilled in the art that the inventive concept may be embodied inother specific forms without departing from the spirit or essentialfeatures thereof. Therefore, it should be understood that the aboveembodiments are not limiting, but illustrative.

According to an embodiment of the inventive concept, only the areadisplayed on the screen of the user client may be combined with adialogue text or may be displayed transparently, and thus, the entirewebcomics may be prevented from being stored even though a user capturesthe entire successive images (i.e., the whole specific episode ofwebcomics). In this way, the webcomics may be easily prevented frombeing unauthorized replicated using the capture function of the user.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept, whenthe capture itself is not blocked upon subscribing to webcomics usingthe web browser of a user client, it is possible to detect and punishthe illegal distributor by adding the identification data unidentifiableby the user to the webcomics.

In addition, a webcomics server may display the watermark generatedbased on user account information, together with webcomics; even thoughthe watermark is not added to all webcomics, the watermark layer may bestored together only when the capture or download is performed, and thusthe webcomics may be efficiently prevented from being replicated.

While the inventive concept has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the artthat various changes and modifications may be made without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the inventive concept. Therefore, it shouldbe understood that the above embodiments are not limiting, butillustrative.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for protecting unauthorized copies ofwebcomics, the method comprising: configuring, by a service serverdevice, a database in which an original webcomic image and an originaldialogue text, which are included in original webcomic data receivedfrom a webcomic maker client device are separately stored; receiving, bya user client device, a user input; transmitting, by the user clientdevice, information about the user input, to the service server device;identifying, by the service server device, based on the informationabout the user input, a current display position on a webcomic, whichhas moved from an initial display position on the webcomic; identifying,by the service server device, a next webcomic image frame that isconfigured to follow a current webcomic image frame that is displayed onthe current display position; generating, by the service server device,final webcomic image data by combining the next webcomic image framewith next dialogue texts, which are stored in the service server deviceand are corresponding to the next webcomic image, and deleting originaldialogue texts which are originally included in the next webcomic image;transmitting, by the service server device, the generated final webcomicimage data to the user client device; and displaying, by the user clientdevice, in real time, an image according to the generated final webcomicimage data.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring comprises:receiving, by the service server device, the original webcomic image andthe original dialogue text from the webcomic maker client device in astate where the original webcomic image and the original dialogue textare separated.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the webcomic makerclient device separates the original webcomic image and respectivedialogue data using a dedicated program to generate a respective file,when a dialogue on the original webcomic image is received directly froma webcomic maker.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the originaldialogue text includes pieces of respective dialogue data, and whereineach of the pieces of respective dialogue data includes combinationposition data to be displayed in a specific webcomic image frame.
 5. Themethod of claim 4, further comprising: dividing, by the service serverdevice, the original webcomic image into each webcomic image frame toassign first identification information; assigning, by the serviceserver device, second identification information to each dialoguecombination position in the original webcomic image; and adding, by theservice server device, the first identification information and thesecond identification information about a dialogue combination positionof the specific webcomic image frame matched with each of the pieces ofrespective dialogue data, to each of the pieces of respective dialoguedata as the combination position data.
 6. The method of claim 1, whereinthe generating the final webcomic image data comprises: providing, bythe service server device, the user client device with a specificwebcomic image of a specific episode; extracting, by the service serverdevice, respective dialogue data corresponding to a current screendisplay area or a webcomic frame adjacent to the current screen displayarea, from the dialogue text to transmit the respective dialogue data tothe user client device; and combining, by the service server device, therespective dialogue data with the specific webcomic image in real time.7. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storinginstructions/program which, when executed by a computer, cause thecomputer to carry out a method of claim 1, for protecting unauthorizedcopies of webcomics.